Email marketing is a tool businesses have been using since ‘forever’ to promote their products or services.
Despite its popularity, different contradictory opinions exist about its effectiveness. Some experts claim that social media is the way to go and that email is outdated. On the other hand, many marketers state that email is the only channel you need to use and is a digital marketing form that actually works.
If you align with the second perspective, then this article is for you. Today, we’re talking all about email marketing and how to integrate it into your content strategies.
Why Email Marketing Works
So, why is email marketing important? Why is email marketing ‘far from being dead’? And most importantly, is email marketing something you should invest your business’s time, money, and resources into?
To answer this, let’s look at a few simple facts.
1. Billions of Emails Are Sent Each Day
When done right, email marketing is actually a pretty effective tool for reaching new customers. So imagine the number of emails sent daily, and you start to see the real power of email marketing.
But what makes it just so effective?
There are several reasons, but they all concentrate on a couple of simple things.
First, we all use email for both personal and professional purposes. This means an email from your friend is likely to appear right beside a new promotion from a store you subscribe to.
Two, email is a medium that allows the development of a relationship. This is achieved through telling stories, including interactive content, and getting your customers to take action with links.
Pro Tip: To drive traffic to your email list, use social media ads to encourage users to follow up
and continue their relationships there.
2. Email is Everywhere
92% of online adults use email. If you’re wondering about the other % that don’t use email, there are probably people who don’t believe in its function.
Most of us use and need email. We tend to trust the quality of the information we receive there above other places, at least to a certain extent. This is perhaps the biggest reason it works so well.
Email is a considerable part of our everyday lives, both personal and professional, and it is for your customers as well. It’s fast and convenient, and customers actually prefer receiving promotional material via email over social media.
3. 4.3 Billion Users Wordwide
Email marketing is important for a successful business strategy. If you ignore it, you might miss out on a powerful tool that connects you directly with your audience.
With around 4.48 billion email users worldwide, more than half of the world is reachable via email. Your business can’t afford to neglect this channel. Plus, unlike social media platforms ever-changing algorithms and features, email marketing remains straightforward and effective.
What You Should Know Before Email Marketing
Here are 11 super valuable tips you should consider before starting with email marketing.
1. Understand Your Audience
Any successful marketing strategy starts with knowing your audience first. Take some time to research and create detailed buyer personas. Identify their needs, preferences, pain points, and behaviors. This insight will guide your content creation and ensure your emails are relevant and engaging.
2. Set Clear Goals
What is your goal? It could be to increase website traffic, boost sales, improve brand awareness, or maybe build customer loyalty. You can create better content and measure results accordingly if your objectives are clear.
3. Create High-Quality, Relevant Content
Content is ‘food’ for email marketing. If it targets the information users need directly, the results of your campaign will most likely be successful. Always keep in mind that content should bring value to the table. Quality is what makes the difference.
4. Segment Your Email List
Segmentation is a functional strategy used by marketers to personalize content. The idea is to divide your email list into “smaller segments” based on criteria that are important to define an audience, like demographics, behavior, purchase history, and engagement level.
After this step, create targeted messages that resonate with each categorized group to encourage higher click rates.
5. Write Eye-Catching Subject Lines
Subject lines are very powerful. They’re the first thing that users see when they open their mailbox. An interesting subject line could turn a user into a potential customer. However, boring and non-relevant subject lines can cause your content to be overlooked.
Subject lines must be concise, without spammy language or click-to baits. They have to actually match the content inside. Otherwise, there’s the risk users won’t find your brand trustworthy.
6. Align Email Content with Your Content Calendar
Your email marketing should align with your overall content calendar. To do so, synchronize email campaigns with your content publishing schedule. For example, if you publish a new blog post every week, you should also plan to send a weekly newsletter with that post. This keeps your audience updated in real-time.
7. Use Automation and Personalization
Do you know that you can use automation tools to send personalized messages? Email automation tools allow you to do that.
You can set up automated workflows that match different scenarios a user could be at. For example, welcome emails for new subscribers, follow-up emails after a purchase, and re-engagement emails for inactive users.
8. Include Visuals and Interactive Elements
Users love visually appealing content. It helps them get a better idea of what the content is about. Some materials you can include are infographics, images, videos, and GIFs, or interactive content like quizzes, surveys, and polls. They also work great for engagement.
9. Optimize for Mobile Devices
People use their mobile phones all the time, and sometimes it’s easier for them to open emails directly there. Create emails with this thought in mind. Make sure they’re mobile-friendly by using a responsive design. Keep your layout simple, use large fonts, and check that buttons and links are easy to tap.
10. Analyze and Adjust Your Strategy
Study the insights of your campaign to see how users behave regarding it. Track metrics like open rates, click-through rates, conversion rates, and unsubscribe rates. Use this data to identify what works and doesn’t and adjust your strategy accordingly.
11. Integrate Social Media and Other Channels
The power of social media can be very helpful as a space to cross-promote your email content across different channels. This will encourage followers to subscribe to your mailing list and help you create a unified brand presence.
Three Essential Steps to Master Email Marketing
1. Build Your Email List
Building a high-quality list is one of the main goals of an email marketer. Here are key tips for building your list:
– Never buy or rent an email list. This practice can result in low open rates, damage your brand’s reputation, and even hefty fines from privacy protection agencies.
– Offer valuable content. Think of good strategies to build your email list, for example, by offering free eBooks or other marketing materials.
– Utilize landing pages and pop-ups. Create dedicated landing pages for your offers and use pop-ups on your website.
– Prompt email opt-ins during online orders. If your business involves online transactions, ensure customers are prompted to opt into your email list when making a purchase.
2. Maintain the Status of Your Email List
Maintaining your email list is just as important as building it. Here’s how to keep it healthy:
– Regularly clean your list. Remove email addresses that bounce or those that never open your emails. Clean your list every 6 to 12 months.
– Monitor engagement metrics. Check for inactive users. Sending emails to inactive users can harm your engagement ratio.
– Use segmentation to increase ROI. Segment your list based on demographics, purchase history, lifecycle stages, and customer loyalty.
– Behavioral segmentation is another way of segmentation that allows you to respond to your users’ needs promptly.
3. Send Valuable Emails
Different users get many emails per day. This is why it is super important your email stands out. Here are some tips for crafting emails that your subscribers will want to open:
– Create compelling subject lines. Use up to 50 characters to pique interest without giving everything away.
– Utilize the preheader effectively. The preheader is the first few words of your email that appear in the inbox preview. They should support the subject line.
– A/B test your subject lines. Continuously test different subject lines to learn what resonates best with your audience.
Write the Email Body:
– Keep text neat and simple. Present the main point upfront using short sentences and lots of paragraph breaks.
– Write for your audience. Target your message to the specific segments you’ve created.
– Adopt a friendly, one-to-one style. This not only creates a personal connection with your readers but also helps prevent your email from being tagged as spam.
-Avoid spam trigger words. Running your emails through a spam test to see whether or not they pass through spam filters successfully.
7 Email Marketing Platforms
There are many email marketing platforms out there on the internet. The right platform for you depends on the type of business you run and the type of subscribers you’re looking for.
Here are our chosen top 7 email marketing platforms.
1. MailChimp
When most people think of email marketing, the first brand that comes to mind is MailChimp. And it’s easy to understand why. The company has some of the best branding of any online B2B product.
Pros:
– Simple drag-and-drop design.
– Effortless A/B testing.
– Easy to understand and report.
– Free service for users with less than 2,000 email subscribers.
Cons:
– Can get pricey once you exceed 2,000 subscribers
– Primarily an email marketing tool, your company might outgrow its capabilities if you need more features.
2. Constant Contact
Constant Contact has been around since 1995 and is still thriving. It offers
many different features, not only for email marketing but also for things like SMS marketing.
Pros:
– Different features, including SMS marketing.
– Trusted by large companies.
– Comprehensive email marketing tools.
Cons:
– Can be more expensive than other platforms.
– The standard plan starts at $35 per month.
3. Moosend
If Constant Contact is a bit too pricey for your budget, Moosend is a more affordable option. Moosend offers unique features like sending specific emails based on the weather in someone’s area.
Pros:
– Affordable pricing ($9 per month or $7 per month annually).
– Unique features.
– High deliverability rates.
Cons:
– Limited features compared to more expensive platforms.
– Best suited for beginners or small lists.
4. Beehive
Beehive is a newer company and is a great platform for creating newsletters. Think of newsletters like Morning Brew. If you want to build something similar, Beehive is your best option.
Pros:
– User-friendly and easy to set up.
– Free option available for up to 200 subscribers.
– Great for monetizing newsletters.
Cons:
– Newer company, so fewer features compared to established platforms.
– Best for creating newsletters rather than general email marketing.
5. HubSpot
HubSpot is great for larger companies or those looking for an all-in-one solution. It’s one of the biggest marketing software companies globally and offers many suites of tools beyond just email marketing.
Pros:
– Comprehensive suite of business tools.
– Integrates with other HubSpot services.
– Ideal for larger enterprises.
Cons:
– Expensive, with plans starting at $800 per month.
– Steeper learning curve compared to other platforms.
6. Brevo (formerly SendinBlue)
Bravo, previously known as SendinBlue, is an affordable and functional tool. While it may not have as many features as Constant Contact or Mailchimp, it is still a solid option with tools like chatbots and SMS marketing.
Pros:
– Affordable pricing. Plans start at $25 per month.
– Has additional tools like chatbots and SMS marketing.
– Good automation capabilities.
Cons:
– There are not as many features as on more expensive platforms.
– Mixed reviews on user experience and interface.
7. ActiveCampaign
ActiveCampaign is best for advanced users who need full automation options. It includes hundreds of prebuilt automations and a massive 850 integration options.
Pros:
– Advanced automation features.
– Extensive integration options.
Cons:
– More suited for experienced users.
– Higher learning curve.
Our Final Thoughts
If you put the right efforts into email marketing, you’re expected to provide great returns for your business. Keep in mind the basic but very important steps before you apply more advanced marketing strategies: know your audience, build a quality email list and learn how to maintain it.
And do not forget to focus on the content you create. Good and consistently shared content will make your target audience want more.